to stay indoors. district in chechnya.presidentobamahasbeen ti esident to russianpresidentobamapraisedthe close cooperation that the united states has received from russia concluding in the wake of the boston attack. the white house statement said the two leaders agreed to continue cooperation on counter terrorism and security going forward. next remark by secretary of state john kerry and mexico's foreign secretary. then the annual state department report on human rights released. after that is a senate hearing n immigration legislation. secretary of state john kerry and mexican foreign secretary jose antonio meade met to discuss foreign relations. before we begin, i want to just say that as a father and grandfather, my thoughts are of course in my hometown right now, boston, where events are still unfolding and the entire city is on lockdown. ctinuintoearn eve nt autheack on monday and the pursuit of justice following it. it is fair to say that this entire week we have been in a pretty direct confrontation with evil. i want to congratulate and thank all of the law enforcemen

that kind of situation? >> we have a commitment topresidentobamathatthose individuals will be detained. what i have said to the chairman and the chain of command is that were afghanistan not to meet their commitment we would have a real operational policy issues to address at that particular time. i think we changed fundamentally the nature of our operations and certainly change the support we might provide to afghanistan in the future. we have an agreement with afghanistan to keep those people detained. were they to violate that commitment i am satisfied that would be a significant change in our relationship and the nature of our operations. >> thank you, general. i want the follow-up on the questions that senator iumenthal ask you about -- appreciated your testimony. sponsor of the contractor enemy permission. as a result of that we have introduced legislation called"never contractinfg with the enemy." made significant progress. to fill in some of the gaps, including dropping the contract level from 100,000 to 20,000, as you had mentioned earlier, it is not just the dot that is contr

topresidentobama, vicepresident biden for their leadership and standing strong and continuing to fight for a safer america. i would like to say they're see forhank you to the senators legislation that would keep guns out of hand and save lives. they stood by us right from the beginning. they were with us. we will not be defeated. we are not defeated. we will not be defeated. we are here now. we will always be here. we have no other choice. we are not going away. every day more people are killed in this country because of gun violence. our determination grows stronger. we leave washington hoping that others, both here and across the country, will join us in making the sandy hook promise. i pledge that we have great hope that more senators will take literally. i would like to end i repeating the sandy hook thomas begins, our hearts are broken. our spirits is not. thank you. it is now my great pleasure to introduce the president of the united states of america, barack obama. >> good job. , in few months ago response to too many tragedies, including the shootings of a u.s. congressman, gab

. this is the "washington times" this morning. sopresidentobamaisheaded to boston tomorrow. the washington post has this -- athens, ohio, ain democrat. caller: the situation in boston is really horrific and the people who did it clearly need to be brought to justice. msnbc i heard someone talking about who we are as a people and he gave amazing examples of nurses and other citizens who came to the aid of the injured and those killed in the situation. he w spoke ho we are not. he said we are not people who maim people. clearly that the case in the u.s. but when we look at ourselves -- and i've not making any excuses for this type of horrific behavior, but we have to reflect upon our own behavior overseas.ou peoplenes, the innocent who have died in iraq because unnecessary war. i'm not saying the people in boston are tied to this, but they could be. we do bomb and maim innocent people. i'm not saying this is the case, that this is retaliation, but it is possible. we need to look at our own do overseas aswe well as who did this, and they need to be brought to justice, but so do we. host: mike in mass

's platform for economic growth stand out from countries all around the world.presidentobama's 100,000strong in the americas initiative will create even more opportunity for students over the course of the next years. finally, we know we have a responsibility to continue to address our security challenges. tore going to continue affect close security cooperation, respect for human and civil rights. we understand those are deeply enshrined in both u.s. and mexican constitutions. at citizen security is critical to e ople of both of our countries. it's really good to welcome you here to washington. i look forward to our conversation. i know president obama is very much looking forward to his trip to mexico in may and meeting with the president. there we will be able to solidify some of the things we're talking about today. welcome to washington. thank you for the extraordinary partnership that we share. >> thank you, sir. good morning, ladies and gentlemen. allow me to express once again the solidarity of the people and government of mexico with united states, with the horrific incid

complementpresidentobama's requestand reflect the undisputable fact that statehood won the november referendum. puerto rico stands in a far different place today than it did six months ago. an historic referendum was held. the president responded to the results and congress now has the responsibility to act. those who seek the equality and progress for puerto rico are on the forward march while those who support the same old status quote are in retreat would drive the debate, while they merely react to the debate. and in the end mindful that the arc of history's long bends the justice, i am confident we will prevail. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from california, ms. lee, for ive minutes. ms. lee: thank you, mr. speaker. let me first send my thoughts and prayers to the city of boston, families and friends and all those touched by yesterday's horrific tragedy. an incredible strength on full display in the streets of boston when untold numbers of people, the police, firefighters, volunteers, r

>> tonight on c-span, reaction on the gun debate from senate democrats andpresidentobama. todaythe senate held a series of votes on gun legislation. there is a measure that would have expanded background check for all gun sales. it failed to get the needed 60 votes. several democrats talk about that boat shortly after it ote shortly after it happened. we will hear from harry reid. >> last week when we began debate on this bill, i indicated

. and with all the challenges our veterans face, i was pleased thatpresidentobama's budgetrequest included a proposal for new transition assistance program that would help our veterans adjust to civilian life. i won't ask you now because i know there are many people who have questions, but i would hope that you could share with us the key components of the new transition assistance program and if you could describe how educational opportunities will be incorporated, what changes will be made to strengthen job search skills and job placement? my time may be up, so if you can just -- i don't know, mr. chairman, if you'd like secretary hagel just to share that. it's a concern for so many of us in our communities. >> if i might just make a very brief response, mr. chairman, if it's appropriate. and then i will provide details for the record for all the members. this is what i would say. hen i came to this job and i said very clearly i had priorities like anyone who is taking on a new job. certainly my first priority is the defense of this country and that's what the president and the congress

.presidentobamarecentlyappointed him to of the advisory committee for trade policy and negotiations. provides policy advice on trade matters, and he and i work together a number of significant matters during his years in the house. we're glad to have you back here. please go ahead. >> thank you. members of the committee, thank you for inviting me to testify before you today. and on behalf of the border security and in it -- modernization act of 2013 i had the privilege of serving in the united states congress from 1985 to 2007, representing -- representing t fifth and eighth congressional district. immigration has always been a issue in this border district. i applaud the senators in the so-called gang of eight who spent many months preparing this legislation. the bill currently before the committee is an excellent start that offers many possible provisions. others on this panel will discuss various economic considerations, but i want to talk about one particular provision, completing family unification. i know, as the partner of an immigrant how difficult it can be to build a life